''Regina v Christopher Huhne and Vasiliki Pryce'' is the prosecution of the former British
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change was a British government cabinet position from 2008 to 2016. The Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 when then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown ...
,
Chris Huhne
Christopher Murray Paul-Huhne (born 2 July 1954), known as Chris Huhne, is a British energy and climate change consultant and former journalist and politician who was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Eastleigh from 2005 to 2013 an ...
MP, and his former wife,
Vicky Pryce
Vasiliki "Vicky" Pryce (' Kourmouzi ( el, Βασιλική Κουρμούζη); born 15 July 1952) is a Greek-born British economist and a former Joint Head of the United Kingdom's Government Economic Service.
She is currently the Chief Econom ...
, the former Head of the
Government Economic Service
The Government Economic Service (GES) is a professional grouping of public sector economists who work across some 40 departments and agencies of His Majesty's Government (HMG). The GES Board is chaired by the Head of the GES and consists of gover ...
, for
perverting the course of justice
Perverting the course of justice is an offence committed when a person prevents justice from being served on themselves or on another party. In England and Wales it is a common law offence, carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Statu ...
, contrary to
common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
. Huhne became the first Cabinet minister in British history to resign as a consequence of criminal proceedings. On 4 February 2013, Huhne was convicted on the basis of his own plea after re-arraignment. The trial of Pryce began on the following day, lasting until 20 February 2013 when the jury were discharged by the judge. A re-trial began on 25 February 2013 and led to the conviction of Pryce on 7 March 2013.
Background
![Vicky Pryce at Chatham House 2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Vicky_Pryce_at_Chatham_House_2012.jpg)
Huhne had been the
Liberal Democrat
Several political party, political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties usually follow a liberal democracy, liberal democratic ideology.
Active parties
Former parties ...
MP for
Eastleigh
Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the 2011 census.
The town lies on the River Itchen, o ...
since 2005. On 12 May 2010 he was appointed to the cabinet office of
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change was a British government cabinet position from 2008 to 2016. The Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 when then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown ...
under the
Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition formed after the
2010 general election. In June 2010, Huhne announced that he was leaving his wife of 26 years. The couple divorced in January 2011.
In May 2011, Pryce stated that she was aware that Huhne had "pressured people to take his driving licence penalty points". Huhne emphatically denied these allegations of
perverting the course of justice
Perverting the course of justice is an offence committed when a person prevents justice from being served on themselves or on another party. In England and Wales it is a common law offence, carrying a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Statu ...
, contrary to
common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
.
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
MP
Simon Danczuk
Simon Christopher Danczuk (; born 24 October 1966) is a British author and former Member of Parliament (MP) who represented the constituency of Rochdale between 2010 and 2017. He has co-written two books, ''Smile for the Camera: The Double Life ...
made a criminal complaint to Essex Police in respect of the allegations. The main
question of fact In law, a question of law, also known as a point of law, is a question that must be answered by applying relevant legal principles to interpretation of the law. Such a question is distinct from a question of fact, which must be answered by reference ...
, as alleged in the charge, was whether Huhne had caused Pryce to accept three penalty points which he had allegedly incurred while driving his BMW car through a
speed camera
In everyday use and in kinematics, the speed (commonly referred to as ''v'') of an object is the magnitude of the change of its position over time or the magnitude of the change of its position per unit of time; it is thus a scalar quantity. ...
between
Stansted Airport
London Stansted Airport is a tertiary international airport serving London, England, United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, England, northeast of Central London.
London Stansted serves over 160 destinations acros ...
and London on the evening of 12 March 2003.
During interviews with
Essex Police
Essex Police is a territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Essex, in the East of England. Essex Police is responsible for a population of over 1.8 million people and an area of .
The chief constable is Ben-Julian Harri ...
, Huhne exercised his
right to remain silent
The right to silence is a legal principle which guarantees any individual the right to refuse to answer questions from law enforcement officers or court officials. It is a legal right recognized, explicitly or by convention, in many of the worl ...
. A decision on whether to institute proceedings for the alleged offences was delayed for eight months while ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' made an application for
judicial review
Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incompat ...
of an order of the
Crown Court
The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all Indictable offence, indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals lied to it by the Magistrates' court, magistrates' court ...
at
Chelmsford
Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of London a ...
that the
Crown Prosecution Service
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The main responsibilities of the CPS are to provide legal adv ...
had obtained, which obliged the newspaper to disclose e-mails between Pryce and its political editor,
Isabel Oakeshott
Isabel Euphemia Oakeshott (born 12 June 1974) is a British political journalist and broadcaster.
She was the political editor of ''The Sunday Times'' and is the co-author, with Michael Ashcroft, of an unauthorised biography of former British ...
,
in which the case was discussed. The application was withdrawn on 20 January 2012. In December 2011, newspapers reported that Essex Police had recommended to the CPS that both Huhne and Pryce ought to be prosecuted for the alleged offences.
Criminal proceedings
Preliminary hearings
On 3 February 2012, the
Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members o ...
,
Keir Starmer
Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras ...
QC announced that there was sufficient evidence to bring charges against Huhne and Pryce. Huhne immediately resigned as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, becoming the first
cabinet minister
A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, ...
in British history to be forced from office as a result of criminal proceedings. They were
summoned to appear at
Westminster Magistrates' Court
Westminster Magistrates' Court is a magistrates' court at 181 Marylebone Road, London. The Chief Magistrate of England and Wales, who is the Senior District Judge of England and Wales, sits at the court, and all extradition and terrorism-rela ...
on 16 February 2012, at which, by right, neither defendant indicated a plea. They were both granted unconditional bail. The case was sent for trial at the
Crown Court at Southwark, with an initial hearing fixed for 2 March 2012.
The charge against Huhne was that:
The charge against Pryce was that:
Crown Court
On 2 March 2012,
Mr Justice Saunders scheduled a trial for two weeks in October 2012, and extended the defendants' unconditional bail until a plea and case management hearing, which was held on 1 June 2012 at the Crown Court at Southwark before Mr Justice Saunders. At that hearing, Pryce entered a plea of not guilty on the basis that she acted under the
marital coercion
Marital coercion was a defence to most crimes under English criminal law and under the criminal law of Northern Ireland. It is similar to Duress in English law, duress. It was abolished in England and Wales by section 177 of the Anti-social Behavio ...
of Huhne. Huhne did not enter a plea, and his
arraignment
Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal charging document in the presence of the defendant, to inform them of the charges against them. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea. Acceptable pleas vary among jurisd ...
was adjourned pending the determination of an application to have the
indictment
An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a legal person, person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felony, felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concep ...
quashed. The defendants' unconditional bail was extended until the opening of the trial, scheduled for 2 October 2012. A series of hearings during the week beginning 1 October 2012 took place at the Crown Court at Southwark before
Mr Justice Sweeney
Sir Nigel Hamilton Sweeney KC (born 18 March 1954), styled The Hon. Mr Justice Sweeney, is a High Court judge.
Biography
Sweeney studied law at the University of Nottingham under Sir John Cyril Smith. He was called to the bar in 1976 at the ...
. An order was made under the
Contempt of Court Act 1981
The Contempt of Court Act 1981 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It codifies some aspects of the common law offence of contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobed ...
, restricting what could be reported. On 5 October 2012, the trial was adjourned until 14 January 2013 for legal reasons, which were not disclosed.
A further pre-trial hearing was held at the Crown Court at
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on 3 December 2012. On 28 January 2013, Huhne's applications to dismiss the charges against him for lack of evidence and to stay the indictment as an abuse of the process of the court were refused by Mr Justice Sweeney, who ruled that there was a case to answer. He was arraigned and pleaded "not guilty" to the indictment. A new trial date was set down for 4 February 2013.
The trial judge was Mr Justice Sweeney. Counsel for Crown was
Andrew Edis
Sir Andrew Jeremy Coulter Edis PC (born 9 June 1957), styled The Rt Hon. Lord Justice Edis, is a Lord Justice of Appeal ( Judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales), having previously served as a High Court Judge.
Edis studied at Live ...
QC. Huhne's counsel was John Kelsey-Fry QC, while Pryce was advised by solicitor Robert Brown and counsel in the case was Julian Knowles QC.
At the hearing on 4 February 2013 at the Crown Court at Southwark, Huhne pleaded guilty on re-arraignment, and subsequently announced that he would resign as an MP by taking the appointment of the
Chiltern Hundreds
The Chiltern Hundreds is an ancient administrative area in Buckinghamshire, England, composed of three " hundreds" and lying partially within the Chiltern Hills. "Taking the Chiltern Hundreds" refers to one of the legal fictions used to effect r ...
. He also resigned from the
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of e ...
, before he could be expelled, losing the style "
The Right Honourable
''The Right Honourable'' ( abbreviation: ''Rt Hon.'' or variations) is an honorific style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations. The term is ...
". He was remanded on unconditional bail until his sentencing. The trial of Pryce for perverting the course of justice began on 5 February 2013. She admitted taking Huhne's penalty points in evidence, but claimed that she had been
coerced into doing so by her former husband.
On 20 February 2013, after the jury was unable to reach a verdict, the judge discharged the jury and ordered a retrial for Pryce. Previously, the jury had asked questions of the judge, including clarifications of "reasonable doubt" and whether they were permitted to come to a verdict "based on a reason that was not presented in court". The judge commented that the jury had an "absolutely fundamental deficit in understanding". The retrial ended on 7 March with Pryce's conviction by a unanimous jury, and sentencing was adjourned.
In February 2013, at the trial of Vicky Pryce it was revealed that barrister and part-time recorder
Constance Briscoe
Constance Briscoe (born 18 May 1957 in England) is a former barrister, and was one of the first black female recorders in England and Wales. In May 2014, she was jailed for three counts of doing an act tending to pervert the course of justice in ...
had been arrested in relation to statements she had made to police that she had not had any involvement with the leaking of the driving licence points-swapping story. Briscoe was arrested on 6 October 2012 as a result of a police investigation. No announcement had been made at that time as to the nature of the allegations against her.
Prosecutor
Andrew Edis
Sir Andrew Jeremy Coulter Edis PC (born 9 June 1957), styled The Rt Hon. Lord Justice Edis, is a Lord Justice of Appeal ( Judge of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales), having previously served as a High Court Judge.
Edis studied at Live ...
told the jury that Briscoe and Pryce had "started it together by approaching a man called Andrew Alderson (a journalist working for the Mail on Sunday)", falsely claiming that one of Huhne's aides, Jo White, took points for him in 2003. According to Edis, Briscoe was a neighbour and friend of Pryce and that the "two of them appear to have cooked up a plan" to bring about Huhne's downfall.
[ On 1 May 2014, Briscoe was found guilty at the Old Bailey of three charges of attempting to pervert the course of justice, by lying to police, falsifying a witness statement, and providing a false document to an expert witness. On 2 May 2014, she was jailed for 16 months.]
On 11 March 2013, Huhne and Pryce were each jailed for eight months.
In January 2014, the government announced the defence of marital coercion would be abolished, which was done in May of that year.
Release
Huhne and Pryce were both released from prison on 13 May 2013 subject to electronic tagging
Electronic tagging is a form of surveillance that uses an electronic device affixed to a person.
In some jurisdictions, an electronic tag fitted above the ankle is used for people as part of their bail or probation conditions. It is also used in ...
. Huhne is working in sustainable energy
Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as greenh ...
. Pryce has written a book based on her prison experience entitled ''Prisonomics'', analysing women's prisons from the economic point of view. Royalties
A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset o ...
will be donated to ''Working Chance'', a charity helping former women prisoners find work.Prisonomics: Behind bars in Britain's failing prisons
/ref>
Notes and references
;Notes
;References
{{reflist, 30em
Trials in London
Trials of political people
2012 in London
2012 in British law
2012 in British politics
Crime in England
Perverting the course of justice
Crime in Essex
2010s in Essex